1. Field of the Invention
The invention described herein relates to taxidermy wall mounts. More specifically, it relates to a mounting apparatus for an animal skull utilizing an improved mounting bracket and customizable support plate modeled after the natural features of the animal.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Perhaps the most difficult aspect of the game of hunting is selecting the style in which to display a prized animal. From wall mounts of varying size and style, to floor and desk/table mounts of the same, there exist numerous options to choose from.
When it comes to wall mounts, one such option is to use the “European” skull mounting system. European mounts exist where an animal skull, or replication thereof, is put on display free of all organic material. The skull can be displayed in this manner with or without the animals natural features attached. For those mounts utilizing the true skull of the animal, the head is first prepped by stripping it of its soft tissue layer, either by using flesh-eating insects or through boiling, followed by bleaching. For those desiring to display their prized animal's natural features in this style without dealing with the preparation of a real skull, a fake animal skull can be substituted. The natural features the hunter wishes to display, e.g., the antlers, are simply removed from the real skull and affixed to a replicated skull, and the setup appears similar to a true European mount.
Regardless of the display method chosen, the time will come when the mount is ready to be affixed to a vertical surface. This is accomplished through the use of a skull mounting bracket, which holds and secures the skull, connected to wall support plate which secures the entire mount to the vertical surface. There exist several shortcomings in both the skull mounting bracket and the support plate of the mounts available today that the present embodiment of the invention improves upon.
Firstly, given that that European mounting style is relatively recent to American taxidermy, there are few mounting methods available with a support system that does not involve drilling and screwing, gluing, or some other physical affixation of the skull to the mounting bracket. Sportsmen tend to shy away from this process as it essentially damages the skull. Moreover, when glue or fasteners are used, the skull becomes permanently attached to the mounting bracket making removal impossible. Sportsmen who wish to display the mount in its natural state (by something other than merely laying the trophy on a flat surface or stand) have very few options, as supporting an animal skull without altering it is complicated. Logically, support for an unaltered animal skull can be achieved through mimicking the way the base of the skull is supported naturally on the vertebrae.
The lower rear area of the skull, the occipital region, contains many natural formations designed to hold and articulate head at the atlanto-occipital joint, or the joint between the atlas, the topmost vertebra, and the occipital bone. These formations occur around a large oval passageway called the foramen magnum through which an extension of the spinal cord passes. Since these naturally occurring structures make up a region designed to support an animal's skull when it is alive, this seems an appropriate area to support the skull for display. The skull is naturally fastened in this area using muscles and tendons, but replicating this method would be akin to gluing the skull to the mount, which is undesirable as discussed previously. Therefore, employing the large and sturdy bone structure surrounding the foramen magnum as the primary support point offers the best option for mounting the skull in an unaltered manner.
Secondly, through a simple online search of taxidermy mounts one finds most mounting bases include a support plate of rather simple design: they are usually large, and a majority of them are made of wood and come in the shape of a shield. Alternatives to the generic plate designs are few, and most all of them add to the size, e.g. profile of the mount which can have the adverse effect of taking the viewers focus away from the animal. There are few choices available to sportsman who would like a skull mount with something other than a large, bulky support plates, or the small but all too common shield design.
There remains an absence in the above referenced materials, and in the art itself of a European skull mount utilizing a relatively simple, set-and-remove skull mounting system with the occipital region at the base of the skull as the support means, as well as a customizable support base that accentuates the mounted animal by using shapes more fitting to the art of taxidermy, such as the animal's natural features. These features include but are not limited to the skull's outer layers, including fur, skin, hair, wool, feathers, etc.; the antlers, horns, tusks, ears, and so on.